A planned data center campus in Odessa, Texas, has secured up to 207 megawatts (MW) of power for its first phase, moving the project closer to construction as demand for large-scale AI computing infrastructure expands across the state.
New Era Energy & Digital announced September 21 that its TCDC PowerCo subsidiary had entered a 20-year power purchase agreement with Luminant ET Services for between 200 MW and 207 MW of electricity.
The power will support the first phase of the Texas Critical Data Center (TCDC), a planned 493-acre campus in the Permian Basin. New Era has planned the development in phases, with the full campus eventually capable of supporting more than 1.4 gigawatts of data center capacity.
The latest agreement gives the initial phase a defined long-term power supply. Electricity deliveries are scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2027.
The project is planned next to Vistra’s 1,180-MW Odessa natural gas power plant. Under the agreement, Luminant can supply the contracted electricity from the Odessa facility, other available generation resources or the ERCOT grid.
New Era has already completed several steps needed to advance the site toward construction. The company said it has secured the property and obtained construction permits for the development. Ector County also approved development and drive-approach permits in August, while the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality approved a notice of intent that allows grading to begin.
Those approvals put the project beyond the initial planning stage, while the new power agreement addresses one of the central infrastructure requirements for a large computing campus.
Phase 1
The first phase will include about 200 MW, while later phases could increase the campus’ capacity over time. New Era has not disclosed the total construction cost for the full development or named a final data center tenant for the initial phase.
The project forms part of a broader expansion of data center infrastructure across Texas, as developers seek large power supplies for AI and high-performance computing facilities. The TCDC site sits near existing generation and transmission infrastructure in the Permian Basin.
New Era and Vistra also established a framework for potential future power development at the site. Vistra will receive a 5% non-voting interest in the portion of TCDC supported by the power agreement once deliveries begin.
For now, the immediate development milestone is the power commitment for Phase 1. With up to 207 MW secured and major site permitting work underway, TCDC is moving toward construction ahead of its planned 2027 power-delivery date.
The push to secure reliable power for large AI computing campuses is also playing out at existing data center sites. In Indiana, Google is seeking approval for 228 additional backup generators at its Fort Wayne data center, another sign of the growing power and resiliency requirements associated with large-scale data center operations.
Project factsheet: Texas Critical Data Center (TCDC)
- Location: Odessa, Ector County, Texas
- Sector: Data center / AI infrastructure
- Developer: New Era Energy & Digital
- Site: 493 acres
- Phase 1 capacity: 200–207 MW
- Ultimate planned capacity: More than 1.4 GW
- Power provider: Luminant ET Services Company, a Vistra subsidiary
- Power agreement: 20-year power purchase agreement
- Power deliveries: Expected Q3 2027
- Adjacent power plant: Vistra’s 1,180-MW Odessa natural gas facility
- Construction status: Site secured; construction permits obtained; grading permitted
- Planned use: AI and high-performance computing
- Total construction cost: Not disclosed
- September 21, 2026 milestone: New Era announced the 200–207 MW, 20-year power purchase agreement for Phase 1.
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